Inmates find freedom in their voices

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The sound of a drum throbs like a heartbeat through the cold walls of the Saskatchewan Penitentiary.

And as the voices of 10 inmates are raised in song, their message is carried to youth on the outside - keep straight, stay on the right path. But how is the message of the Broken Wing Singers carried outside these stone walls?

Through an innovative project which saw members of a Saskatchewan recording studio bring in a mobile unit to the pen to set up the first recording session of its kind in Canada. The 45-minute, 12-track cassette tape resulting from the sessions will be released this month for distribution throughout North America.

The singers, lead by Clem Mitsuing, have been getting together to practice for eight to 10 hours a week. While its members change, with some serving life terms, Broken Wing has been making powwow music for approximately four years.

Mitsuing, who sang with Onion Lake and Little Island drum groups, has been writing for the Broken Wing Singers for little over a year. In interviews with local media he describes the drumming practices as an uplifting and spiritual experience for the members, who include two non-Aboriginals.

The group decided to bring their message of keeping out of jail to Aboriginal youth through a powwow tape. They contacted a local recording studio specializing in powwow recording, but the project was delayed for a year. Once the ball got rolling, however, it gathered support throughout the community.

"The whole idea behind the recording is they want to send a message out to young people - that prison isn't the place to be, stay away from the wrong side of life," said Ted Whitecalf, of Sweetgrass Records in Saskatoon.

Funding was gained through the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations, as well as through the federal government, with Whitecalf and Sweetgrass Records donating time and effort. Whitecalf admits he had second thoughts about the project.

"I thought to myself 'I don't know if these guys are OK.' I wondered about the legalities involved."

But the message behind the request was strong and sincere enough for Whitecalf to approach studio staff about the project.

"I was kind of worried at first, I had never been in a place like that before, I didn't know what to expect,"he said, laughing.

They came in with nine microphones, a portable sound mixer and a 50-pound recorder. The results were amazing, Whitecalf said. And he was won over by the inmates' friendliness and honesty.

"It was a really an honor to be there and I was grateful to be a part of it."

While the music is moving and the players accomplished, they cautioned anyone from seeing prison as an opportunity to gain experience. "The most important thing is to educate the youth not to come here to find their spirituality. Find it out there," said Kevin Sakebow.